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Out of Africa: The Continent’s Best Modern Furniture

From upcycled oil drums to culture-clash chairs, the best of the continent’s contemporary design

By

Augusta Greenbaum

Updated Nov. 4, 2016 11:04 a.m. ET

Although the new book “Africa Rising” (Gestalten) asks that Africa be regarded as a continent of distinct countries, not one vague idea, the works of design it features share a characteristic: storytelling.

“Gold” is the name that designer and manufacturer Hamed Ouattara, a Burkina Faso resident, pointedly gave his cabinet, made of recycled materials such as oil barrels. “The piece is about how one man’s trash can become another man’s treasure,” he said. Of the case’s art deco-flavored facade, inspired by traditional...